Hitherto, there has generally been utilizes a tape guide 81 of a type as shown in FIG. 1 (A) which is formed of stainless steel tube cut in accordance with a predetermined size and has inner and outer diameters determined so as to be releasably mounted to a cassette case C as illustrated in FIG. 2 or a tape guide 82 of a type as shown in FIG. 1 (B) which is formed of a cylindrically rolled stainless steel plate with steeply bevelled four corners so that its bevelled portions may form locating recesses 83 for preventing rotation when mounted in a cassette case C.
Recently, the reduction of cost over every VTR product has been required, as well as for the tape guide of a cassette tape for VTR.
The reduction of cost may be attained by decreasing the production costs and suppressing the material costs.
In case of tape guides 81 and 82 of the types as hereinbefore described, production costs may be reduced only by two solutions, by improvement of manufacture into the form of a readily mouldable process, or an automatic operation to reduce the labor cost. Processing of tape guides 81 and 82 of those types, however, have already been almost automated, for which reason an improvement in processing yet could not achieve a sharp reduction in cost. In present manufacture, production on such a large scale as hundreds of thousands or millions have been carried out, so that the production cost per piece unit is insignificant.
Consequently, there is no alternative but reduce the material cost or the proportion thereof. Tape guides 81 and 82, of the types as hereinbefore described, are wholly formed of high quality stainless steel, even at high cost, encountering difficulty in reduction of the cost and proportions of the material.
It has therefore been attempted to reduce material costs by thinning the whole plate thickness, notwithstanding that the inner and outer diameters of the tape guides 81 and 82 have been standardized on account of the formation of the cassette case C, for which reason it was difficult to moderate the plate thickness.
In order to be victorious in international competition, price-cutting is inevitably required, and every manufacturer has had a fierce competition, notwithstanding that no significant reduction in cost has yet been achieved.
In consideration of the foregoing various problems, an object of the invention is to provide at a considerably reduced price, a tape guide which is used by mounting in a cassette tape for VTR and which preserves the same high precision and anticorrosive and wear-resistant properties as conventional tape guides, but which exhibits less frictional resistance against the tape.